Whether you are just starting an after school program, camp, or other children’s activity business, or you have been running one for some time, you should understand the importance of strong marketing. You don’t get a second chance at a first impression and using professional pictures and well designed marketing assets can help get more families interested in your activities.

As a small business owner and educator, you might not have the time, expertise, or funds to put into creating these marketing assets. But, that doesn’t mean that you should forget about marketing. Luckily, there are a number of free and paid online tools that you can utilize to help you create high quality marketing materials easily.

One of these online tools is called Canva and it is becoming increasingly popular amongst small business owners because of its ease of use and large variety of offerings. Since our goal at Sawyer is to help children’s activity businesses grow, we put together this guide for educators to learn how to use Canva to create high quality marketing assets. Plus, we’ve created our own templates that you can use to save time and make a great impression.

• What is Canva?
• ~Why is Canva helpful for your business?
• Canva templates for children’s activity businesses
• How to use Canva templates 

What is Canva?

Canva is an Australian company that has taken the business world by storm in recent years. Started in 2013, Canva is “an online design and publishing tool with a mission to empower everyone in the world to design anything and publish anywhere.” It sounds lofty, but according to their website, Canva users have created over 10 billion designs using their tools.

Canva users can create just about anything using the platform. It is a free program with options to upgrade for special access to additional features. Many people use it for static digital designs like social media posts, header images for email marketing, presentation decks, company logos, and more. However, they can also use the tool to help them create videos for their marketing campaigns and print items like postcards, business cards, posters, and registration fliers. 

Users can upload their own images or use icons and design elements available on Canva. They can also utilize templates (more on that later!) to make designing assets even easier. 

Why is Canva helpful for your business?

Marketing is necessary if you want to expand your audience and grow your business. While it is not the only route for growth, it is one of the most important and effective. And high quality marketing assets are the best first step. Canva is helpful to your business because it is a tool that can help you build these high quality assets and put your best foot forward for potential families.

Canva templates for children’s activity businesses

Canva makes it easy to create marketing assets, regardless of your design and computer skills, but if you use templates in Canva, you can create high quality assets even easier. That’s why our wonderful Sawyer designers created these Canva templates that you can use for your own marketing. To access the templates all you need to do is create a free Canva account.

1. Instagram Story template. Instagram Stories are a great way to announce classes, share customer reviews, offer discounts, hold contests, and interact with customers. According to Techjury, 70% of Instagram users watch stories daily, which means they are important for your business to implement. Check out our guide with more Instagram Story ideas that you can implement with our templates.
2. Instagram post template. In-feed Instagram posts are also important for your business marketing. Instagram reports that one in four Instagram using women over 18 in the US are moms. And of those, 93% use Instagram at least once a week, and 68% use it daily. Therefore, creating high quality Instagram feed posts is important to increasing your reach. We have more Instagram marketing strategies in our guide for inspiration.
3. Flyer template. Posting print fliers in your neighborhood and at local schools is a great way to market your classes and activities. Use our guide to learn how to make connections with schools so you can get the word out.
4. Postcard template. Postcards are useful whether or not you decide to actually send them out. You can also put them in mailboxes yourself so you don’t have to pay for postage, give them out at the end of classes, or leave them with schools and other local businesses.

How to use Canva templates

Use this handy step-by-step guide to successfully use Canva templates for your business!

1. Upload your image using the "Uploads" tab in the left hand menu. Then, with your image selected, drag it over the placeholder image in the canvas. If you don’t have high quality photos you can use free photo sites like Pexels or use Canva’s image gallery. 
2. Double click your image and move it to adjust the crop for a better fit. Consider using images that match the proportions of the placeholder image.
3. Edit the existing text with your company and class details.
4. Once finished, click the "Share" button in the top right corner of the screen and select "Download" from the menu.
5. Select “MP4 Video” for versions with animated illustrations. Select “PNG” for static versions. 
6. Select which pages you would like to download and then click "Download" to save your images.

Tips for using Canva templates:

1. When it comes to text, less is more. If additional directions or context is needed, add that information on subsequent slides or in the caption of your post.
2. Make sure to start with the highest quality imagery you have at full size.
3. To add additional pages, click the button next to the lock above the page canvas to duplicate your page.
4. You can also select “Share on social” and connect the relevant platform to your Canva account to post that way.

We hope that this guide has taught you how to use Canva to make marketing assets for your children’s activity business. If you are looking for guidance on managing and running your children’s education and activity business, the team at Sawyer is here to help.

With our suite of tools, like custom forms to record allergies and t-shirt sizes, flexible payment options like gift cards and installment plans, and seamless scheduling and registration on any device, Sawyer saves business owners 28 hours per month. If you are ready to spend less time on admin and more time doing more of what you love, see how Sawyer can help with a free trial or demo.